Five Stages
by Blossom cat
Summary: Natsu is having a hard time admitting his feelings to a certain blonde haired celestial mage. He's going through several different stages, and is slowly accepting them each stage. Pure NaLu fluff


**A/N- I had just come up with this idea randomly and thought it would be super cute to try out. It's going to be the backbone of the five stages of grief but instead of grief, it'll be replaced with a falling in love feeling. I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer- I don't own Fairy Tail or the characters, that all belongs to Hiro Mashima.**

* * *

_1\. Denial_

No way. No way had he fallen for her. She was loud, obnoxious, and she always hit him. He just couldn't believe he would fall for someone like that. Gazing at the blonde from far away, he blew a raspberry.

Who would fall for such a woman? She was cute, sure. She was kind and helpful and she always saw the good in others, okay. But a lot of women were just like her, what made her special. Nothing. Nothing made her special from any other girl in the guild.

He wouldn't believe it, even if someone beat it into him. He just wasn't the type to fall in love. He knew that he wasn't, it wasn't in his nature. He had no desire to be with a girl. To hold a girl's hand and have the need to stay by their side. He only needed his friends and that was it.

So he was into blondes? He didn't even know that until she joined, maybe that was what made her special? No, absolutely not. He wasn't attracted to her in any way, they were just friends and they will remain that way until they're dead. Hell, he'd rise from his grave if he was told they would be together in some type of after life.

Happy waved a hand in front of his face. "Natsu, what's up with you lately. Were you even listening to me?" The blue car pouted. Natsu shook his head and looked away from the celestial mage. He pat Happy's head and apologized softly. "Jeez Natsu. All you do is stare at Lucy now. Does she have something on her?" He snickered. Natsu pursed his lips in realization that he was staring.

"Nah, she's just being weird is all. Just like she always is." That's when the gods looking down on him cursed him. The same girl that had just been talking about turned her head away from the short blue haired woman she was talking with. She smiled brightly and waved at Natsu. No! She wasn't pretty dammit! She stood up and said goodbye to Levy.

She jogged up to him, her golden hair swishing with ever move of her hips. He looked away with a scoff. Like that could ever be attractive, hair was just a part of her head. The only thing it does is keep her from looking bald. She scooted next to him, pushing him over. He was about to yell at her when he froze.

He got a whiff of her strawberry and vanilla scent. The smell was the only thing he could think of for the moment, like it cut off all other access to other senses. He could barely see, getting dizzy. That was just a side affect from the strong smell, nothing to do with actually liking her scent. The girl set down a paper in front of both of them.

"Look at this cool mission Natsu! It says here that there is a small fire demon burning down some village houses. It's perfect for you, you can just eat him as he is entirely made of fire. Cool right? It was the only one that really suited you up there." Her voice was annoying, the way is sounded like an angel's. What did angels even sound like? He didn't know but he did know her voice could be counted as angelic. But it was high and preppy and irritating. He suppressed the urge to growl.

"That's the smartest thing you've ever done Lucy!" Happy teased. Lucy yelled out to him. Her nose scrunching up and her eyebrows lowing in anger. How can an angry and annoyed expression be cute. Yeah, it can't be. Natsu did not find her being angry cute at all. She was loud and mean, that's all there was to it.

Happy laughed at Lucy's mad face and flew out of her grasp while she chased them. Everyone at Fairy Tail laughing at their antics. She was childish, but in her defense so was he. Maybe that's why he found her so fun to hang around. A small smile graced his face as he watched Lucy grab Happy's tail and grab his face to stretch his cheeks painfully.

"Stupid cat, mind your manners!" Happy called out for help, his small paw grasping for Natsu. The pink haired mage only laughed. "No one can save you now cat!" Lucy growled. Natsu shook his head with a sigh. She was his best friend and he didn't ever want that to change, which is why he hadn't and will never fall in love with her. It was impossible.

He told himself not to worry too much about it. Life has a funny way of telling him how to deal with things and what his next step will be. He put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. Eventually opening one to glance a peak at his best friend. She crossed her arms with a huff while Happy repeatedly apologized to her.

He chuckled at the way had her back to him and chewed on the inside of her cheek. It was so immature, but it was so Lucy. He knew her like he knew her apartment, and trust him, he's been around every crevice of that place. That's why he could never fall for her, she was just way too weird for him.

Right?

_2\. Anger_

He punched a nearby tree in the woods. How could he act so stupid! She wasn't an idiot, she probably figured it out already. Not that there is anything to figure out. He punched the tree again. And again, and again, and again. Huffing, he looked down at his bloodied knuckles.

He leaned his head on the tree, not caring if it made an indent on his forehead later. He groaned so loud, you could hear the birds flap away from him in the distance. Thankfully he had ran away before she really noticed anything. He gave her a pretty good excuse, he was hungry. She never questioned his actions then.

She was so clumsy, Mavis why was she so clumsy?! It wasn't just unfair to her but to him too! He seethed in anger. He hated feeling this way, hated the way he reacted to the situation. Any other time it would happen, he laughed it off and helped her up and they went on their merry way.

He thought back to that morning with Lucy.

_Flashback_

_Natsu and Lucy decided to go out with Happy to go grocery shopping after both him and happy raided her kitchen and ate everything she had. He rubbed his sore head thinking about the memory. She hit them pretty hard that time, he was almost sure if she hit even a fraction harder then his eyes would of popped out of his sockets. He sighed and followed behind her closely like she instructioned. It seemed she didn't trust him enough to not run away._

_Which she was right on. Everytime they went grocery shopping, he and Happy always managed to slip away while she looked at different food items. Not this time. No, she held on to his sleeve tightly and onto Happy's tail as if he were a balloon. Her grip was firm and she was on hyper aware._

_If he even moved an inch backwards, she glared at him so deadly it could of rivaled both Erza's and Mira's combined. He really regretted eating her fridge out. They made it into the town square where there were multiple stands and booths selling all kinds of food. Lucy smiled softly at the men at the booths and asked for different assorted items. Mostly fruits and vegetables, but she had also bought some meat._

_And she secretly got something for Happy while he wasn't looking. Although she was mad, she still loved Happy and knew it would make him glad she bought it. They stopped by a hotdog stand, all Natsu's doing. He got down in his knees and begged her loudly to stop by, embarrassing her. That was always a sure fire way to get her to do things he wanted._

_"You're such a pig." She scoffed, watching him scarf down his meal. He licked his finger and pat his stomach._

_"That was a good hotdog!" Natsu sighed happily, ignoring her insult. That's what he usually did, he kept in mind what Lucy had to say about him. Which is why he became slightly better at manners than he was used to. But he wasn't going to change over night and she was going to have to understand that. They stood up, Lucy dragging Happy along. _

_They had started to walk back to her apartment when she suddenly tripped on a raised part of the sidewalk. He was in front of her this time so he turned around to catch her but her weight was overpowering as he wasn't prepared. Lucy let go of Happy at the exact moment she tumbled down to the ground with Natsu. Everyone's eyes were on them as Lucy rubbed her head. Natsu wasn't even sure what he was seeing, he was probably hallucinating from the fall._

_"Oww...oh my gosh, Natsu I landed right on you. Are you okay?" She asked him, but made no move to get off as she was too busy worrying about him. Natsu had regained his thoughts when he realized what was going on. Any other time he would just stand up and call her weird and clumsy. Then Lucy would hit them and life would go on. That hadn't happened this time._

_He froze, analyzing the position they were in. Lucy was hip to hip with him, her hands on his chest as she slightly pushed herself up to look at him. Though she was pushed up, they were mere centimeters from each other's faces. They stared blankly at each other before exploding with a fierce blush. Natsu didn't even know he could feel such a heat._

_He picked her up quickly and stood up himself. Looking as far away from her as possible, he checked his wrist as if he had a watch. "Oh my would you look at the time. Gotta eat lunch back at home. See ya later guys!" He ran past her, her hair whipping back towards him with the momentum. He didn't look back at her, too embarrassed to even say one more word. Why had he reacted the way he did?_

_"But you just ate!" Lucy yelled throughout the crowd of people. He ignored her and kept running until he was only yards away from his house. He put his hands on his knees and breathed heavily like he ran a marathon, although you could say that's what his heart was feeling like at the moment._

_"What the hell!" He screamed out in the open, angering finally bubbled over._

_Flashback End_

"stupid stupid stupid." He banged his head on the tree multiple times. He was still angry at himself but his explosive behavior had died down a while ago. He just felt incredibly idiotic now, running away like a coward. Sighing, he laid down on the grass and looked up at the clouds. What was going on with him lately.

It was like he couldn't even go near Lucy without acting out of character. It wasn't right and he absolutely hated it. He told himself a while ago they were just friends so why hadn't either his mind or body listened to him.

He thought of going to the guild. Smiling, he stood. Maybe he could just fight these feelings away. He was never really fond of them anyway.

_3\. Bargaining_

He would do anything to make these stupid feeling disappear. The fear and mysterious feelings weren't worth the trouble. Maybe he could ask someone to take these feelings from him. Maybe Levy could cast some sort of spell on him to make them go away! Yeah, she could use one of her old books and just zap them away.

He would pay literally any price for them to just disappear. He couldn't take it any longer, the mere thought of Lucy had him up in flames, literally. He can't even think about her face without a table catching on fire. It wasn't fair to him! And those stupid emotions were affecting his mission taking. He doesn't even think about going on solo missions anymore.

It would be too weird without Lucy. Lucy is a number one priority when he does take any, not even the mission itself is as important as her well being. He can't be apart from her for more than a day and he feels physically ill if he can't see her smile. Lucy this and Lucy that. It was annoying!

He slumped up to the seat across from Levy. Which also happened to be right next to Gajeel but he only ignored the slayer. He was way too drained to fight today. Levy put her book down and gave Natsu a worried look. Turing to Gajeel for an explanation, he only shrugged.

"What's with you Salamander. You look like shit." Gajeel muttered. Not that the iron dragon slayer would admit it, but he was slightly worried for his guildmate. Although Natsu was a pain in the ass, he had a good heart and doesn't deserve to look that troubled. Natsu only sighed sadly. Slamming his face on the table.

"I'm not here to talk to you metal head. Levy I really need your help, I'll do anything." Natsu mumbled, his voice muffled from the way he had his face on the table. Levy took his hand and rubbed circles soothingly. She asked him to lift his head. He did as he was told. She gasped at just how tired he actually looked.

"Oh my Natsu! You look horrible, what is going on?" Gajeel stayed quiet and observed him quietly. The way he looked seemed familiar, almost like he experienced it at some point. Though Gajeel couldn't put his finger on it. Natsu hummed and let his eyes drop for a moment. He must of really been tired.

"I need you to make these feelings go away. Can't you use one of your magic books or something?" He pleaded desperately. Levy raised an eyebrow at this and patted his hand before setting it down. Her more logical mode was turning on. What exactly was he asking of her. Made his feelings go away? What feelings?

"What kind of feelings are these and when do you experience them?" A tint of pink appeared on his cheeks, raising her suspicions. He looked away and shyly scratched his cheek. Gajeel almsot had the notion to puke. He looked pathetic, like his counterpart in Edolas. Gajeel said nothing and only crossed his arms.

"I know what they are. I'm not stupid, I'm just asking you to take them away. They're annoying!" He scoffed in exhaust.

"Well I have to know when you get these and what they are. I can't help you if I don't know every detail about what you're asking me." She stated softly but firmly. The pink that only tainted his cheeks before, grew and became a more cherry red. This was certainly surprising to Levy. She had never seen him made such an uncomfortable face. He groaned before digging his face into his hands.

"Spit it out Salamander, we don't have all day."

"I'm trying piercings! This is a lot harder than it looks." Natsu exhaled and opened his mouth to talk but only closed it. Levy sighed and took his hand once more, this causing anger to rise in Gajeel for a moment. Natsu looked at her in surprise, his flushed face very present. Levy gave him a wide smile that calmed him down. She nodded, giving him time to find the words.

"It's okay Natsu. Take your time."

"W-Well, it happens around Lucy and...and my face gets hot and her voice sounds like angels, she can't seem to do anything wrong in my eyes and I can't ever focus anymore without thinking of her. It's messing up with my missions and they won't go away, no matter how hard I think about anything else. I need to you to perform a spell snd make them go away." He finished, astounding the two mages. Levy wanted to laugh but she didn't want to upset him more. He already seemed stressed enough.

"You do realize what this feeling around Lu-chan is right? It's love-"

"Don't!" He yelled suddenly. Levy was startled into silence. "Don't say it out loud. It's embarrassing as it is..." Natsu murmured. Gajeel wasn't one to read mood well, he just laughed. Natsu glared dangerously at the tan man. If he wasn't so tired, he would of punched that stupid slayer by now. At this time, Gajeel gained the attention from each guild member. Them giving him an odd look.

"There isn't a book that exists in all of Fiore that can take away your feelings for bunny girl!"

_4\. Depression_

He told Lucy he was sick that day. He couldn't look her in the eye. He avoided her for a whole week now and he's going to continue to do so until he's able to get his emotions under control. Thank Mavis most of his want is kid friendly. Though there is a part of him that just wants to slam her up against a wall and-

See what he means? He doesn't want to risk whatever is going on inside his mind. After Levy told him there wasn't any to get rid of his feelings, he was feeling pretty low. She assured him that Lucy felt the same for him. Not that he was accepting those feelings.

And there came another thought. Rejection. If he ever admitted to feeling something, what if he told Lucy? What if she rejected him? Their relationship would tumble down and their partnership would break. He couldn't handle that. That was too much, he cared for Lucy way too much to let her go.

He laid in his hammock and looked up at his cracked ceiling. He was alone for now, Happy was busy with Wendy and Charle to even check up on him. Not that he minded, he could use some alone time to think. Sighing, he let his hand drop to the floor, picking at the wood. The only thing that came to mind now was the blonde haired pain.

He then heard a knock on his door. With his heightened sense of smell, he realized it was Lucy. He panicked and raised his temperature quickly so that she wouldn't question if he was actually sick. He was guaranteed the red and sickly face, his face could go crimson just looking at the girl. He wrapped a blanket up to his chin and coughed loud enough so that she could hear.

"Come in." He rasped. She stepped in shyly and he heard the door click closed softly. Around the corner, Lucy appeared with a large pot of soup and a small smile on her face. She set the pot on his stove walked up to him. Pulling a chair up to his hammock, she placed a hand on his forehead.

She reeled back and held her hand. He may have gone overboard with the temperature raising. "Oh wow you're burning. Here, let me get you a bowl of soup that I made. It was my mother's secret recipe when I was sick. I managed to get it out of her when I was real sick one day." She stood and stepped in his kitchen. His eyes fluttered closed, taking in her scent. Even though she was the source if his problems, she always made him feel better.

She stepped back in with a hot bowl of soup and a spoon. She sat down and blew on the soup filled spoon before asking him to open his mouth. Man if he wasn't embarrassed before, he sure is now. Opening his mouth reluctantly, he allowed her to place the liquid down his throat. It was surprisingly delicious.

He managed to finish the whole pot, making Lucy giggle. He was full, but he wasn't any happier. He frowned and turned away from the giggling Lucy. She then noticed his behavior and tapped on his shoulder. "Are you okay Natsu. You don't seem as chipper." He rolled his eyes playfully in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Well I am sick Lucy. Weirdo." He smiled at her snarl. She crossed her arms and turned away from him with a pout.

"Well sorry for worrying. You seem fine to me!" He laughed softly and watched as she started to pick up around his room.

"What're you doing?" He asked her in curiosity. She puffed up her cheeks cutely and threw some if his trash away before answering.

"Living in this filth is probably what got you sick. Let me do you a favor and clean up for you. Trust me when I say you'll probably feel so much better when I'm done." Natsu grunted and tried to get some sleep. Hearing the shuffling if Lucy's feet was oddly soothing, lulling him into a sleep. He was awfully tired. Being sad and wallowing in self pity did take a lot out of a person. During his sleep, Lucy took her empty pot and left his house after cleaning it top to bottom

He woke up around an hour later with a small note placed on his head. He took it and looked down at the girly hand writing, definitely Lucy. It read that she left while he slept and promised to come back tomorrow. His heart skipped a beat at the little heart in the corner of the note. It was erased and redrawn several times it looked like. Like she was contemplating to really put it there. Was it a good sign that she kept it.

Hope fluttered inside him for a moment. Maybe he was just over reacting about this whole thing. His mind finally cleared up about everything. He promised himself to just go with the flow, to stop worrying about what ifs. It was nerve-wracking he admitted but he's dealt with wore.

Lucy was just a girl, just one. She can only make him feel so much. He doesn't need to be in love with Lucy to be happy with Lucy. That's just the truth of the matter. She was important to him and it seems to be vice versa as well so he wasn't going to move around anymore.

He grabbed his vest and shrugged it on. He placed the note on his wall closest to his hammock and smiled. Lucy was surely at the guild by now, if he caught up quick enough, maybe she would still be there. And if she wasn't, he always knew where she was then, at her apartment.

He ran out the door with a bright smile on his face, his mind finally made up.

_5\. Acceptance_

Okay so maybe he was in love with the blonde celestial mage? Who wouldn't fall for such a bright and happy person. A girl with such beauty and grace. The way she smiled at him melted his heart like no other. And maybe he was a sap now? So what?

He wasn't one to talk about his feelings often but he's been going to Levy at least once a week to help him out with dealing with his feelings. And to get Lucy to fall for him too, Levy told him she already loved him, but he never believed her. Natsu, now more than ever, got closer to Lucy. He would make sure to spend as much time with the blonde as possible. A week if avoiding her had crushed him.

He couldn't do that again. Lucy seemed to be okay with it. The closeness he means. She doesn't mind when he suddenly hugs her anymore and she doesn't kick him out of her bed anymore. He's become a lot more mature with the blonde which is probably why she's changing the way she acts as well.

He's made sure to drop tons of hints like Levy said to. This way Lucy would get a pretty clear idea of what he was looking for. He asked Levy why he couldn't just tell her his feelings, but she yelled saying that Lucy wouldn't understand. That Lucy might get scared if he suddenly just proposed his emotions to her. He didn't understand women but they knew more about this than he did so he wasn't one to oppose.

Natsu smiled and bit into his steak that Lucy carefully cooked for him. She was surprisingly good with meat and knew just what he wanted. Happy was busy chewing on a grilled fish while Lucy decided to join him with her own steak. Lucy giggled at the funny faces Happy was making while she bit into her food. Natsu smiled openly and watched the pair converse. They were like a small happy family.

Levy told him that this was the time to tell her what he was feeling. He had accepted his feelings for her around a couple months ago and had been dropping huge hints ever since then. Lucy should be seeing this coming. He stuffed the rest of his food down his throat, nervousness creeping up on him. Was he even ready to do this? He told himself for weeks that he was ready but now that he actually has to do it, it seemed a lot harder.

This was a huge step for him. He was never good with words but the girls forbid him to just show her by kissing her. That it had to be romantic, he barely knew what the work meant. He coughed, gaining the attention from both Happy and Lucy. He eyed the blue car expectingly. Happy furrowed his small eyebrows before realizing what was going on.

Happy gasped and nodded. Happy was one of the first to know about everything so he was all in on their little plan. Happy announced he needed to find Charle and flew out the window. Lucy laughed at his silly antics and dug I her food once more. Natsu could only stare at her as she ate.

She looked up at him, frowning. "Uh do I have something on my face?" She sighed and set down her knife. "You're being weird again Natsu. You have been all day. Is there something I should know about?" She asked him. He shook his head silently and looked away from her. He had to calm his racing heart before it popped right out of his chest.

"I just need to tell you something but it's a bit difficult." Was all he could think of to say. He could feel his voice get higher by the word. Man how pathetic did he look right now? Lucy hummed and washed off her plate after finishing. She bent down in front of him and smiled.

"You don't need to worry so much about it. Take your time, I can be awfully patient you know." Lucy grinned and pat his head. "I'll be right back. I need to take a bath." He nodded and watched her leave. She was just so perfect and understanding. Especially towards him. He rehearsed some lines he would at in his mind and waited for her to come out.

She stepped out with pajama shorts and a tank top, drying her hair with her towel. He clenched his fist. "Lucy, I've been meaning to tell you this for some time." Lucy froze and blinked.

"Where did this come from?" She chuckled nervously. He grabbed her towel from her head and threw it on her bed. She squeaked in surprise when he grabbed both of her hands and held them close to his chest. He noticed her swallow hard with anticipation. He was going to do it.

He was finally going to tell her how he felt. He would kiss her so that she would know he wasn't joking in any way. He knew he could do this, it didn't seem so bad now. With all that preparation from Levy he was sure he could do this confidently. He smiled down at her nervously and watched as her cheeks became rosy.

"Lucy I..." Lucy's eyes dropped, only letting her eyes be seen halfway. Like she was expecting him to do something. His confidence grew with every breath she took and every sentence that ran through his mind. He would of smiled if he wasn't so nervous.

"You...?"

"I am...I love" He was really going to do it!

"You love?"

"I uh...really love that steak you made!"

Maybe another time.


End file.
